Thetownend.com

On tonight, 7-30 in Legends, anybody going?

Alas no. OOoop north today for the weekend.

There was another thread somewhere about this. I'm sure JFW and a few others were going.

Ive changed my mind and now would rather go to circuit training

No - having my hair done and going for dinner.

No - having my hair done and going for a pint.

:D

Im washing my hair!

I'm going to the traffic lights on Queens Drive to buy drugs from Cherno Samba

I'm going to make a tent in the front room and eat Diarylea.

You've got a date then.

Is it being broadcast on the radio per chance

I'm going  :D

Why is Phil King there though..is he maknig a comeback and going to be DW's 1st signing ?

Where did you get that preposterous hypothesis? Did Steve tell you that per chance???  Mmmmph Steve!

:D

Joma to make our kits next season. Really nice kits apparently. Head of Joma Uk is a season ticket holder. Not definate, could still be nike or adidas but Joma is favourite.

We're playing in our 3rd kit at home to Franchise to mark 40th anniversary of our League Cup win but the football league wouldnt let us play in white.

Just got that via text. Wilson hasnt got there yet so they've had the kit lady chatting away!!!!

joma do Charlton and Cardiff and Deportivo apparently.

quality boots n all

For all you wikipediaphiles out there...

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joma

i have been tempted to get some joma's or kelme's for quite some time

I had some joma's once was very disappointed.

Thoroughly enjoyable evening. Can't help but feel we're in the right hands with Wilson. Him, Peacock and Kingy were a good laugh. Not much given away, we won't be signing any Hartlepool players, should have 1 or 2 in before Walsall and Craddock turned us down because he didn't wanna move from the midlands.

Spoke to a lot of the marketing staff there too. They're so keen to really push the club forward and get it on the map it was really refreshing to speak to them. Had a nice chat with the kit lady who told us about the new suppliers, she said a few of them prefer Joma and their kits were of a very good quality but that's nothing definite.

We'll be playing in black and blue V Franchise at home though. Strange.

Oh, and the scout that gave us the two french blokes also gave us Comminges last season.

Well we will no doubt be black and blue after the game so I dare say why not be during the game? :)

Joma... hmmm.. Suppose cannot be any worse than Lotto.

...until the summer.

when we can pick up the rejects they didnt want and really go for 15th place :)

Sooooooo, it could be Adidas or Nike, but it'll probably be Joma.

Great......

Has anyone gone to a STFC Q&A/event, got back home and thought "he was a moron"... If so, lovely stuff :)

The Comminges was a good shout, hopefully Mr. Scout has done it again.

I liked how Nike and Adidas was suggested, we know it'll be joma - not that I care.

Yes but that was Bob Holt...

True. Anyone else?

I enjoyed that a lot. It was interesting to hear what DW and Peacs had to say on certain matters and they, along with Phil King, generally made it an enjoyable evening and a good laugh at that.

I think we're in very good hands with Wilson at the helm. He knows what he wants and ultimately, knows what  he's doing.

Onwards and upwards!

haha no-one ever said that about malpas. never ever

Glad those who went enjoyed it.

I'll just stick to watching shite football and base my opinions around that.

They didn't  ;)

I was hoping Franchise were going to be black and blue in that match.

Preaching to the convereted.
Wilson out!!

I'm glad DW has convinced some that he knows what he's doing....he hasn't exactly hit the ground running.

Do you not think? He's not panicked and has shown a calm level head. It appears that he is trying to improve the team but has lost out on a couple of players. If nothing has happened in the transfer window and results and/or performances haven't improved by the end of the month then I will change my mnd.

I got the impression that we may be signing a Hartlepool player in the summer, DW stated that he wouldn't be after any right now but he did know that 11 of their squad are out of contract in the summer.

Fuck me. What is it, an hour and a bit up the road!

That's what I thoguht/

And Ronnie yes it did sound like we'll be pinching a few in the summer, but not in the window!

Wilson slated Hartlepools support as well, and said there is a lot more quality in our squad than up there but I suppose he has to say that.

Nah, he does know what he's talking about. Obviously the 3 games he's had haven't gone as we'd like but he admitted he had pretty much no input on the Brighton game, we played alright against Stockport considering they're pushing for the playoffs and obviously we were shite against Huddersfield but he knows where the problems are and he wasn't afraid to admit that. He knows what he wants. I can't help but think that even if the rest of this season doesn't go the way we want it, he'll be successful here.

I'm sure the eternal pessimists such as Reg will shoot me down.

I've not been to one of these things before but thought I'd pitch up last night and I was glad I did.
Left feeling that the management on and off the pitch know what they are doing and things are definitely looking up!

Jodie Beauchamp syndrome?

Why should Craddock drive the distance if he can find a club closer to his home than Swindon? From what I've read we're not his only option.

From what DW said it wasn't just a question of travel, Craddock wasn't ready to drop out of the championship - even for a short spell.

Whyever not? He'd only be in league one for a couple of months anyway...

He obviously thinks that he is too good for us! Fuck him.

He's probably right

My vote for the kit supplier goes to Adidas, so it will match my trainers and the rest of my Adidas gear. Nothing beats Adidas for sports gear, the three stripes says it all. Probably more likely to get kids wearing it if it's Adidas or Nike.

Talking of strip colours, I'd like to see us go back to the original strips the club played in. My favourite would be the red and black quadrants, though white would be good as well, not so sure about green. I know red has been our colour for 100 years or whatever but it is just so damn boring - everyone plays in red. Time for a change and it would be a bold statement to start a new re-branding / launch of the STFC brand.

I don't like the Robins nickname either. My choice would be "the steam" after the railway works.

Oh go on then, just for you Jonathan.

 :fishing:

More importantly did anyone manage to clear up the cheese issue with DW?

As for the nickname argument we should be the Moonrakers. Robins is fucking shit.

I agree about the nickname, the robins is a shit one and there are so many other robins about.

I dont know why but I've slowly come to hate the new badge as well.

Just keeping up appearances DV :)

I remain Pro-Moonrakers for the change of nickname.

Moonrakers would be my second choice, though chanting "moonies" doesn't have the same ring as "steam".

Just anything other than the Robins.

Who chants their nickname anyway? I can't think of many clubs that do.

Chanting the word steam?! We could do it to that East 17 song.

 :D

you cant just change your nickname can you?? after like a million years of being something?

P.S My sister was in the East 17 fan club and had an East 17 duvet cover  ;D

What about dopplegangers?

I heart East 17.

I've grown a shit beard and currently have a hat balanced on the top of my head , with a set of trousers 6 times too big hanging halfway down my arse in tribute to them

I think we all do, Deep Deep Down - ahem.

I was always a Take That girl - my sister was just trying to be a rebel like East 17

thats Christmas song is a classic though Ill give em that

Reading did.

Who in their right mind would chant "robins"?

Whereas I can see myself joining a "steam, steam, steam" chant.

Not so sure about chanting "moonies" though, which I guess would be the shortened version of Moonrakers.

The players could al exit the tunnel on board a mocked up steam locamotive, similar to the one at coate. Get Andy King back, he would be the fat controller.

Actually there could be a good goal celebration routine there, all the players line up and jog forwards whilst moving their arms to make them look like pistons. The player at the front can pull the whistle and all the crowd goes "toot, toot". Or something like that.

Oh god no.

Perhaps they could all line up behind each other and simulate having anal sex in a love train esque motion

And Sunderland to the Black Cats!

Perhaps they could all line up behind johny and kick shit out the dopey fucker

I'm neither an optimist or a pessimist, but rather someone who looks at the facts available and tries to make some sort of judgement...which are, we've played 3 games under DW's tutelage and gleaned 1 point; yet to acquire or ship out any players, yet are in the same position points wise as 05/06, when the only side below us in L1, were a side managed by Wilson, who he failed to keep up.

I think it would be remiss of me to suggest I feel good about our situation, hopefully all this will change, and we'll see an improvement as from Tuesday.

...that's too mechanical Reg, if that's your way of thinking - why on earth do you follow football? :)

I'm looking forward to this season being over, I feel reasonably safe with Danny Wilson at the helm.

The family of football fandom, is a broad enough church, to accommodate a variety of thought patterns.

That's good enough for me.

if i remember rightly, people were impressed with moronic malpas after the last one of these q+a things.?

I believe so, it's why I asked last night whether anyone has ever got back from a Q&A and thought "what a moron" (Bob H aside)

Sandy Gray?

My erm name erm is sandy erm gray.

erm

To be honest we never really learnt a thing, except a roast beef roll costs £3-50 and the marketing team are trying hard!!  It was a fun evening, not to be taken too seriously, probably not helped by that lanky sod Shaun Hodgetts compering it!!  The clever twat tried to pose two STFC related quiz questions and was taken aback when several of us shouted the right answer immediately.  One of his questions to the top table was to ask Kingy to name the Sheffield Weds winning fa cup team!!

And I cannot add up when it comes to vat calculations!

Holt, Gray, Little Willie, James Wills, Andronikou, just to name a few from the past few years off the top of my head. Christ, we've been spoilt for choice in recent years - if you've never come away from an AGM/forum/pretty much any event when the board has been on show recently (prior to the takeover) thinking "Jesus Wept, I wouldn't trust these people to run a bath never mind a business" then you're easily impressed or just weren't listening.

There was one they did in late 2005 (I think) that was just pure pain. Sandy Gray chaired it. Holt was there, it was supposed to connect with the fans, but it was just terrible. Moron's every one.

They got Devlin back shortly afterwards.

You forgot the sleaze ball Paul!!  He was quality!! :cry:

 Worth a little mentionette, that despite the hours of fun any number of our previous incumbents gave us, they at no stage ever tried to suggest not holding AGM's. Something which our current owners are known to favour.

A low blow that deserves to be corrected.

Previous boards may not have suggested removing the requirement for an AGM from the clubs articles, but then they didnt have the legislation in place to allow it at the time. If they had, you can be fairly sure they would have been keen. After all, for several years they didnt hold AGMs despite it being illegal!

Fitton proposed to remove the legal requirement for an AGM, but has never suggested that they would not wish to hold one, a subtle but important difference.

Even more importantly he was prepared to reconsider in the face of opposition from minor shareholders, something that the previous imcumbents would never have done in a million years.

 Whatever the fine detail of the argument, I consider it important that the Board are held to account for their actions...with the AGM being a decent vehicle for it to happen.

 For me wanting to remove the legal requirement for an AGM, is the first step to potentially not having one.

Why are you such a miserable cunt Reg?

Fitton was going to insert a clause in the articles of association for a meeting between the shareholders and members of the Board. Oh and the last AGM anyone was allowed in, shareholder or not, which surprised a lot of people and Fitton said he'd done it because they had nothing to hide.

Reg is just fishing. He's been doing it since the Board got appointed.

Has Dave M Russell hacked your password?

  :clap:  Everything is great at our club...is that better.

He's got a point though Reg, you should change your avatar to Eeyore. Recently you've been a right miserable bastard - kind of like Bart but with added "Tales of the Old Railway" stories ;)

seen as Bart hasnt been seen for ages. I put it to the TEF that Reg is actually Bart

Seconded.

Actually, Reg seems to have got more miserable as you've cheered up - I think you've got some weird "slough of despondency" transference going on. Kind of like a miserableness Picture of Dorian Gray. Leave Reg alone and dump your excess gloom on someone else!

So, if I become more miserable Reg will become more happy?!

I'll try it

 I refuse to be silenced by the happy clapping tendency...you lot may be satisfied with everything on the good ship STFC, but I'm not....

 [url width=227 height=227]http://www.didcotrailwaycentre.org.uk/guide/photos_square/branch_02.jpg[/url]

  My grandfather used to work this signal box at Radstock Junction.

:) Nice one Reg, made me chuckle

Agree completely about that.

What I find odd, is that you seem determined to compare the current board unfavourably with previous ones. Previous boards may not have "suggested" doing away with AGMs but in several recent years we have had no AGM being called despite it being illegal!

I go to Radstock alot Reg...also Midsomer Norton...which as you kow is Rogers coutry,only a small area but always seems alot going on there.

My father was born in Midsomer Norton....Somerset coalfield

He probably knew the Rogers mob then...was talking to a fella about the coal mines in Somerset and in fact the Forest of Dean..it was very interesting,the work was shockingly hard.

He also omits the rather salient point that the proposal in question was actually withdrawn voluntarily by the board after they'd listened to and taken on board suggestions from the floor of the AGM. Which puts a rather different light on the matter - you don't get a lot more responsive to listening to the fans than that. How many people remember Holt doing something like that at an AGM, as opposed to misleading shareholders about the financials?

Bob Holt said that holding an AGM was just like buying a house.

 Using the term "known to favour" I think is fair enough. Whether this becomes a reality, we'll have to wait and see....I'm hoping not.

We cannot give this Board carte-blanche, because they're not Diamand Mike...

I love carte-blanche, it's most tasty.

Isn't any AGM essentially essentially pointless as the board own enough shares to basically force everything through before the meeting anyway.

However didn't they say that they would have meetings anyway to update??

But you only told half the story and in so doing, gave an extremely lop-sided picture

Absolutely right there. This, or any other, board still needs to be seen to be running things well, and taking their custodianship of our club in the best interests of the club. And you're also right that just because they ain't Mikey and cronies doesn't mean everything suddenly converts into a land of milk and honey. There is indeed still much to be put right and Fitton and co haven't and won't get everything right and they shouldn't be considered beyond criticism for ever more just because they're not blatant incompetents/crooks. That said, I'd agree with Andrew that recently it's seemed like in pointing out some of the problems, you've been veering towards the "Just as bad as ever" line which is patently balderdash. Along which lines, the CVA should finally be lifted shortly as Andronikou has finally got round to distributing the cash he's been sat on since May to the creditors.

In terms of actual motions yes however it has proved a very useful mechanism in recent years of holding the board to account or at least of exposing their blatant incompetence/lying to shareholders etc. There's some examples in the thread that was kicked off on here around the time of the last AGM when the proposal to do away with them was discussed. Or just ask Sandy Gray and Holt how much they enjoyed the AGMs!

They withdrew the proposal to get rid of AGMs altogether after suggestions from the floor that if they wished to dispense with the legal formal requirement to hold an AGM per se, they could be replaced with mandatory (ie written into the club's articles of association) shareholder meetings at which x% of the board would have to be present and which would have to be held on a regular yearly cycle. Which would amount to the same thing for all intents and purposes but would remove the legal penalties under which the old board used to regularly incur fines. So they would still be required to hold AGM-like meetings but would avoid incurring fines if the next meeting happened to straddle a calendar year boundary (e.g. you hold AGM in Dec, if you hold the next one the following Jan +1, even though you're only a few weeks late, you get fined). Clearly if you're going to put something like that in the Articles of Association, it wasn't going to be feasible to draft something on the floor of the AGM so they withdrew the proposal altogether and agreed to incorporating mandatory shareholder meetings in a re-written AofA to be prepared for the next AGM.

A lot of businesses have taken the option to opt out of AGMs altogether, as a cost and admin-saving measure, including many football clubs. To my knowledge, ours is the only one to listen to arguments from shareholders and withdraw a proposal they could, as you say, have forced through.  Which is why Reg's characterisation of this as "they want to get rid of AGMs" is quite away from telling the whole truth

Shes great in Corrie too.

Naughty Paul...this is your characterisation of my words, that the current Board are known not to favour AGM's.  After all James Wills is still on the Board and he never went anywhere near a meeting.

Wills is on the board as his dad still owns some (20% ish?) of the shares no? I'm fairly sure he has sod all to do with running the club.

He will get a vote on key policy decisions though, along with the other Directors.

Strangely Wills was at the last AGM. He looked so out of his depth whenever Fitton asked him a question it was actually quite funny. Unfo4rtunately he was re-elected by the majority of voters.

I must admit I did not think an AGM would be so useful to a minority shareholder, but after attending the previous one I can definitely see the benefit of an annual meeting.


Reg you should become a politician. You're pretty good at putting negative spin on the 'opposition'.

I've done my stint in politics and have no desire to resume...anyway I regard PD as a comrade, rather than opposition.

My apologies, although your formulation omits so much of the actual story, it's a far worse distortion of the facts than my paraphrase. For someone so keen on AGMs, I'm surprised you weren't there ;)

I'm glad to hear it! Careful with that word "comrade" you'll have Oberfuhrer Ironside on our case, although I suspect we're already both on the "First against the wall list" anyway.

Quite simply too fucking early on a Saturday morning...out on the lash on Friday night means nothing is going to happen much before about 1:00 on a Sat, unless of course it involves some sort of pleasure.

I've done enough AGM's to know they're fairly low down on the hedonism scale.

You missed out, this year they covered us all in whipped cream and lashed us into a frenzy. Nah, it's a reasonable shout.